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Atlanta Half Marathon - Run


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Atlanta, Georgia
United States
Atlanta Track Club
50F / 10C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 49m 21s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Up early to meet friends at the start. Parked at Brookhaven, jumped on Marta and took it one stop north to Chamblee. At this point I was hoping for a longer Marta trip.. it was nice and warm on that train. I ate 80 percent of a power bar, which is all I can usually stomache, and drank some water.
Event warmup:

Met friends at package pickup on the bridge near the start. Stood there and tried to stay warm. No warm up to speak of.
Run
  • 1h 49m 27s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 21s  min/mile
Comments:

I ran a marathon almost one month to the day prior to this race, and between that and this, I spent the majority of the time fighting a virus and a sinus infection. I got in exactly two runs during that time period and very few other workouts. Going into this run, I figured a 2:00 plus time was a worthy goal. Over the first few miles, I evaluated how I was feeling and set my pace accordingly. I set in behind a few buddies of mine and decided to pace with them for a while. About mile 5, I lost sight of them and decided I could make this a fairly decent performance. I was not tailing off as I expected. The last quarter of the course is a series of uphill climbs. Hills with names: Cardiac Hill at Piedmont Hospital, Grade Expectations in Midtown, and Capitol Punishment in front of the Ga Capitol building. I was able to keep up a decent pace throughout the race and came in at 1:49:21 watch / chip time. Gun time was 1:51:02.
What would you do differently?:

Not sure. I ran this well. I like to PR on difficult courses, so perhaps one year I will attempt that here. PR for the half is 1:41.
Post race
Warm down:

Grabbed a water, then headed over to Joe's truck. Watched his brother Mike finish as a walker. It was his first 1/2. Headed back up to brookhaven, then home for the Feast.

Running on Thanksgiving seems so right.



What limited your ability to perform faster:

Illness over the previous month.

Event comments:

I enjoyed this years run significantly over last years. Yes, the weather was good, but I also went in with lower expectations of the race experience overall. This is a no frills, low key event and my expectations were met. T-shirt was good and the addition of the medal for the half was welcome. I don't see the need to stage this event with a full marathon, but that is a discussion for another day.




Last updated: 2005-11-28 12:00 AM
Running
01:49:27 | 13.1 miles | 08m 21s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Course: Point to Point, starting in North Atlanta near the Chamblee Marta station. The course winds down Peachtree through all of the significant portions of Atlanta: Buckhead, Sobu bridge, Midtown, Downtown, and finally to Turner Field.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? No
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2005-11-28 10:26 AM

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Master
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Atlanta, Ga
Subject: Atlanta Half Marathon


2005-11-28 11:03 AM
in reply to: #293016

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Veteran
124
100
Subject: RE: Atlanta Half Marathon
Well done! I wish I could've spotted you on those last two miles. Needed the extra boost. We both had similar feelings about the race prior to the start and our expectations were definitely exceeded. Made for a great day along with great weather and great friends.

Congrats on your strong run. It's not an easy course.

2005-11-28 12:05 PM
in reply to: #293016

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Veteran
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Smyrna
Subject: RE: Atlanta Half Marathon

The rabbit eludes you again.

Congrats on a great race - especially after being sick for so long.  I like the strategy of pacing yourself off of your friends and then trying to beat them at the end.  Sneaky. Some might even call it cheating.

2005-11-28 12:19 PM
in reply to: #293016

Extreme Veteran
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Subject: RE: Atlanta Half Marathon
Congrats on a great run time in spite of having been sick! Nice work
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